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Milestone achievements for students in disadvantaged communities

16 March 2017

Students from some of Australia’s most disadvantaged communities will celebrate milestone educational achievements this month, at a special graduation events hosted by The Smith Family.

Five ceremonies are being held across the country, with students, families, Smith Family supporters and team members coming together to acknowledge the great successes of this year’s graduates, many of whom are the first in their family to complete Year 12 or attend university.

In total, more than 1,700 students graduated secondary school, TAFE or university courses in 2016 while being supported in their education through The Smith Family’s Learning for Life program.

18-year-old Salina Tairoski from Western Australia is among those who graduated from high school last year, having been supported by The Smith Family since she was in primary school. Currently studying a Diploma of Youth Work, her goal is to attend university next year to undertake a bachelor’s degree.

“My little family, consisting of myself, my sister and my mum, has never been in a financially strong position. Having ongoing support from The Smith Family takes a lot of the stress off and makes it profoundly easier to focus on our education,” said Salina.

“The Smith Family not only looks out for the students who aspire to be doctors, lawyers, scientists or even the next Neil Armstrong – they look out for everybody,” she added. “My ambition is to help the youth and contribute some positivity into their lives. I’m not sure how to do that yet, but I am on my way to figuring it out.”

As the largest charity providing educational support for disadvantaged Australian children, The Smith Family currently assists 33,000 students across the country through the Learning for Life sponsorship program – but the need is so much greater. With the program expanding to reach more children this year, sponsors are urgently needed to help support these students throughout their education.

The Smith Family’s CEO, Dr Lisa O’Brien, said students on the Learning for Life program face significant challenges, including growing up in low or no-income homes where affording life’s basics is a daily struggle.

“Too often, family struggles at home can affect a child’s schooling,” said Dr O’Brien. “The children we support are likely to live in single-parent homes and their families may also be dealing with the challenges of long-term illness, disability, limited education or unemployment.

“I’m so proud that The Smith Family and our sponsors have been able to walk alongside these students and help them on the way to a future full of possibility,” added Dr O’Brien. “What these young people have been able to achieve with a strong network of support and guidance is truly inspirational and we’re incredibly proud of their results.”

About Learning for Life

The Learning for Life program provides support in three ways:

  1. Financial assistance for core education-related expenses, including books and uniforms.
  2. A local Coordinator who works with the child’s family and school to encourage and support their
    long-term participation in education.
  3. Access to a range of learning support and mentoring programs, including literacy, numeracy, career and post-school pathways, as well as digital and financial literacy initiatives for parents and carers.

A unique feature of Learning for Life is the long-term nature of the program. Students can start on the program in their first year of primary school and continue right through to the completion of tertiary education. Referrals to the program are made through partnerships with hundreds of schools in over 90 highly disadvantaged communities across Australia where The Smith Family works.

Data gathered by The Smith Family over the last four years demonstrates the program is working, with students benefitting from higher Year 12 completion rates and improved educational and employment outcomes. In 2015, 84 per cent of former Learning for Life students were engaged in employment, education or training, a year after leaving the program.

Find out more about sponsoring a child: thesmithfamily.com.au/sponsor-a-child

Media contacts:

Andrew Dickson | National Media Manager (National) - 0421 285 529 | andrew.dickson@thesmithfamily.com.au
Carla Horton | Senior Media Advisor (QLD & WA) - 0423 618 776 | carla.horton@thesmithfamily.com.au
Reid Jermyn | Media Advisor (VIC, SA & NT) - 0412 803 566 | reid.jermyn@thesmithfamily.com.au 
Ben Chenoweth | Senior Media Advisor (NSW, ACT & TAS) - 0413 346 934 | ben.chenoweth@thesmithfamily.com.au

The Smith Family is a national children’s education charity that helps young Australians experiencing disadvantage to create better futures for themselves through harnessing the power of education. We partner with around 800 Australian schools and work with over 162,000 children and young people experiencing disadvantage access our education support programs to help them overcome . For more information, visit thesmithfamily.com.au